Conflict management is one of the most stressful and frustrating aspects of a school leader's job. An inability to overcome conflicting viewpoints, ever more palpable in today's polarized climate, stymies innumerable school reform efforts. Yet, the subject is rarely examined in graduate-level leadership preparation programs or in-service…

The Schools of Opportunity Project recognizes public high schools that employ research-based practices to close opportunity gaps. The commended schools illustrate how school quality can and should be measured by far more than just test scores. In doing so, they offer exemplars and a path forward for the nation's schools. The selection criteria for…

Many schools and out-of-school organizations use social-emotional learning (SEL) programs to boost students' skills. Yet research shows that these programs can be difficult to implement and don't always meet students' needs. In response, Rebecca Bailey, Laura Stickle, Gretchen Brion-Meisels, and Stephanie Jones propose a new approach to SEL…

Schools across the country are changing how they discipline students by implementing research- and evidence-based disciplinary practices that have yielded positive results for schools and students. These disciplinary practices--known as Restorative Justice, Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, and social and emotional learning--largely…

Milwaukee's gay-friendly Alliance High School was conceived to be a welcoming and confirming school for kids who have been teased and bullied and had their interests marginalized in traditional schools. The result is a group of teens who feel they have found a safe place as they explore who they will be and how they will live the rest of their…

Discusses some of the prerequisites for the successful operation of the political process in effecting educational change: decentralization of authority, freedom of information, and fiscal power in the hands of the consumer. (Author)

In a protracted case involving a varsity basketball coach's refusal to select a problem parent's son, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals decided the suit was frivolous and ordered the parent to pay $2,500 in court fees. This case illustrates the intersection of three American excesses--litigiousness, athletics, and divorce. (MLH)

A 1979 law enacted by the state of Connecticut in response to a lengthy and bitter teacher strike may have served as a catalyst to improve the negotiation process. The law mandated a mediation process and compulsory binding-interest arbitration. (Author/WD)

A study of 24 Friends high schools nationwide concluded that conflict is the cruciform spawning individual moral growth and the primary locus for moral growth in adolescents. Instead of avoiding conflict, educators must engage students in responses to conflict that are nonviolent, creative, and peace-promoting. (MLH)

Proposes creation of a tongue-in-cheek award for those who would rather sue than try to resolve problems through negotiation and communication. Nominates specific cases tried in 1982, 1983, and 1984 to receive the award. (Author/PGD)

Management and teacher leaders in Livermore (California) have turned to integrative bargaining as a means of resolving conflict and negotiating contracts. Integrative bargaining reduces the adversarial relations characteristic of the industrial relations model of collective bargaining. (WD)

Describes the "Educating for Citizenship" program, comprising curriculum materials based on the real-life experiences of 6-to-10-year-olds. Designed to alert youngsters to citizenship rights and responsibilities and to provide opportunities to practice citizenship skills, the program succeeds because it promotes civic participation and democratic…

Operating under the umbrella of the Santa Barbara County Education Office, the Beyond Tolerance Educational Center serves as a resource for educators. It provides county schools with information and programs that promote social awareness and tolerance while teaching kids the dangers of hatred and discrimination. (MLH)

A style of bargaining for educators and school boards is described, based on rational inquiry, open discussion, and peaceful persuasion. (MF)

Recounts the difficulties of establishing a shared decision-making model at an elementary school used to more authoritarian governance. In another school more familiar with participative methods, this principal deemphasized administrative perfectionism and maintained team management by acknowledging the value of controlled conflict and modeling…